From language barriers to lack of equipment, environmental hygiene is suffering throughout the world.
Health care environmental hygiene (HCEH) is vital to the safety and positive outcomes for patients regardless of where the facility is in the world. However, few, if any, major surveys have been done on the global stage. Recently, 50 health care facilities from 35 countries participated in a quantified review to find out what their practices are to figure out a baseline and to figure out what needs to be done to be done at all income levels.
This is the second part of a 2-part interview with Alexandra Peters, scientific lead for Clean Hospitals, Infection Control Program & World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Patient Safety, The University of Geneva Hospitals and Faculty of Medicine in Geneva, Switzerland, and a lead author of the study, “Results of an international pilot survey on health care environmental hygiene at the facility level,” recently published by the America Journal of Infection Control spoke to Infection Control Today® (ICT®).
The first part of the interview can be found here:
“There are a lot of issues to access to products and supplies, like we know that that's not anything new. But I think what our survey showed was that there's a lot of things that are institutionally malfunctioning, and that are able to be changed without using a lot of additional resources,” Peters told ICT® in the interview. “But that the environmental hygiene programs are looked at more like hotel housekeeping, and they're not being addressed holistically, and they're not being addressed scientifically. And that's where I think we can make the most headway by developing a tool like this.”
This survey was only the first step in improving the HCEH throughout the world, but Peters is optimistic: “We've seen how a similar tool for hand hygiene has improved levels worldwide. I'd like to do the same thing for environmental hygiene.”
Dear Helpdesk: Working in a Toxic Health Care Environment
March 28th 2024Dear Helpdesk is your steadfast companion, offering life coaching and workplace advice from 2 seasoned IPs for some of your most challenging real-life situations. Let us help you navigate the intersection between work and life, guiding you to navigate the dynamic world of infection prevention with confidence and grace. This article is on handling a toxic health care environment.
Product Locator: Spring and Early Mother's Day Gift Guide for Infection Prevention Personnel
March 27th 2024Whether it's a spring holiday, birthdays, or no reason at all, infection prevention personnel love to give and receive gifts that help at the end of a stressful day. Infection Control Today® offers some gift ideas for infection prevention personnel and their families.
Catching Up With Vangie Dennis, AORN 2022-2023 President at AORN 2024
March 26th 2024Infection Control Today (ICT) had the privilege of catching up with Vangie Dennis, MSN, RN, CNOR, CMLSO, at the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses' (AORN’s) International Surgical Conference & Expo 2024. As the former president of AORN and an esteemed figure in perioperative services, Vangie Dennis shared insights into her recent endeavors and the exciting new chapter she's embarked upon.
How To Optimize Your Time Management Strategies for the Busy Infection Preventionist
March 25th 2024Is your calendar resembling a chaotic masterpiece of overlapping tasks? Join the club of infection preventionists striving to balance responsibilities. Dive into proven strategies from a fellow infection preventionist to reclaim control of your time, streamline tasks, and boost productivity effectively. This is an IP Lifeline article.
CenTrak Unveils Revolutionary BLE Multi-Mode Platform for Health Care RTLS Solutions
March 22nd 2024CenTrak, the industry leader in real-time location technology, introduces the groundbreaking BLE Multi-Mode Platform, setting a new standard for Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) in health care. Discover how this innovative solution enhances location data precision and streamlines operations for health care organizations.